http://www.sgmeet.com/aslo/granada2015/sessionschedule.asp?SessionID=101

101 - MICROSCOPIC PLASTIC DEBRIS AND ITS IMPACT ON AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS

Global plastic production has risen rapidly over the past sixty years,
and 10% of all discarded plastic waste is thought to end up in the
oceans. There it can fragment, but takes centuries to fully degrade. As
a result, microplastics (small plastic detritus ? 1 mm diameter) have
become a widespread pollutant, and are increasingly present in aquatic
ecosystems (both freshwater and marine) across the globe. Microplastics
can be ingested by an array of marine life, although the risk they pose
to the health of aquatic organisms is still largely unknown. In this
session, we aim to bring together the latest research documenting the
distribution of microplastics in aquatic ecosystems across the globe,
evidence for bioaccumulation of microplastics in laboratory studies and
from field surveys, and studies addressing the biological effects of
microplastics ingestion on organisms from across the food web. Studies
documenting how best to locate and identifying microplastics in water,
sediment and in organisms themselves would be of interest as would
information on hotspots of contamination and vulnerable species.
Finally, it would be of particular interest to discuss the potential
ecological impacts of predicted increases in marine litter on different
aspects of ecosystem function and biogeochemical processes.

ORGANIZERS

Tamara Galloway , University of Exeter
t.s.galloway@exeter.ac.uk

Dr Ceri Lewis , University of Exeter
c.n.lewis@exeter.ac.uk

Matthew Cole , University of Exeter
m.cole@exeter.ac.uk

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